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Sunday, April 24, 2016

Good morning blog readers.From the passages today, I gleaned several key thoughts which I took notice of relative to my walk with God.1) Even as David gained notoriety for his success, it was God who was the author of that success; 2 Samuel 8-13 And David became famousafter he returned from striking down eighteen thousand Edomites[g]in the Valley of Salt.

14 He put garrisons throughout Edom, and all the Edomites became subject to David. The Lord gave David victory wherever he went.

15 David reigned over all Israel, doing what was just and right for all his people

The exact same words are repeated in 1 Chronicles 19- The Lord gave David victory wherever he went. 14 David reigned over all Israel, doing what was just and right for all his people. How often is it that we turn to God and are closest to him when things get tough and we are going through a rough patch. Yet when things are going well (job, family, health) we tend to forget our Creator and focus on our own self-accomplishments. David owed all his success in battle and even his reputation to God. To his credit, David did not let success go to his head and continued to rule Israel in the same manner that he had always ruled- with justice and fairness. Regardless of our success or lack thereof, we need to focus on God, be humble and conduct ourselves in a manner that is in keeping with God's attributes- fair and just.

2) David continues to dedicate the gifts he receives from conquered nations to God. 1 Chronicles 18- 11 King David dedicated these articles to the Lord, as he had done with the silver and gold he had taken from all these nations:

This goes back to that same thought around the realization that any success we have comes from God and needs to viewed from that perspective. This not only refers to physical / financial gain we might receive throughout our lifetime, but also refers to the talents He has bestowed on us (music , leadership, etc). We need to not only be willing to utilize these for his purposes, we also need to actively seek opportunities to put these into service.

3) Psalm 60 provides additional insight into the battle challenges and prayers of David as he faced these nations he was battling. It was not the easy cake walk that seemed to be part of the above accounts, where God seems to deliver David's enemies one after another. The later part of the Psalm again provides the insight that David acknowledges where his success will come from ....11 Give us aid against the enemy,for human help is worthless. 12 With God we will gain the victory,and he will trample down our enemies. As we face challenges on a daily basis...the lesson for me here is that I need to be in a right relationship with God and turn first to Him, rather than attempting to relying on my own skills or strength to solve things. Once deliverance is granted, I need to give God the glory so that through whatever challenges we are facing, He is glorified.

1 comment:

Great thoughts Kelora. Those same verses stood out to me too. Particularly the portion that refers to human help as worthless. That puts it in perspective doesn't it? EVERYTHING good about us or that happens to us is a credit to God, not us.